A trial date has been set for May 1 for the Cleveland, Tennessee, man charged in the Jan. 6, 2021, breach at the U.S. Capitol following a hearing Monday in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.
Joseph Lino "Jose" Padilla, 42, has been detained in a Washington jail for the past 20 months as his case has been dogged with delays, and U.S. District Judge John D. Bates on Monday put a motion schedule in place and carved out a week for Padilla's trial.
Bates, who has become increasingly impatient with progress in the case, set a status hearing for March 1 to discuss resolutions to any motions from Padilla's attorney, Michael Cronkright, or Douglas Brasher, the prosecutor in the case for the U.S. government.
Brasher told Bates the government was ready to proceed with the case but Cronkright said there were some issues to deal with first, including the possibility of reaching an early resolution to the case with a plea. Padilla's attorney is to inform Bates by Dec. 1 of his intentions.
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"We are making some progress towards that fork in the road between resolution and trial, and I think it's likely that there is going to be one additional attempt this week for us to resolve the case to find out if that's a possibility," Cronkright told Bates. "In the meantime I think what's appropriate to do today is to set a trial date and motion schedule, and that way we'll have everybody's feet to the fire."
U.S. Department of Justice / Joseph “Jose” Lino Padilla, of Cleveland, Tenn. Padilla face multiple charges in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington.Cronkright told Bates he still plans to file motions attacking at least one of the counts against Padilla, though he didn't specify which count.
Cronkright estimated trial could take five days or more, while Brasher said he believed the trial could be completed in five days or less, according to Monday's hearing testimony.
Bates set the case for trial to run from May 1-5, at least until the March 1 status hearing. A decision still remains on whether that trial will take place before a jury or the judge, according to Monday's hearing testimony.
Either way, Bates said the weeklong block still presented problems in getting the case tried because his trial calendar is already very busy with Capitol breach cases.
Attorneys in the case are to inform Bates by Jan. 31 about whether Padilla will seek a jury trial or bench trial.
Padilla's wife, Rebeka Padilla, declined comment on the case when contacted Monday by phone.
Padilla has remained in federal custody since his arrest Feb. 23, 2021. He pleaded not guilty in the case on March 30, 2021, court records show.
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Padilla's charges include assaulting, resisting or impeding certain officers; civil disorder; assaulting, resisting or impeding officers using a dangerous weapon; obstruction of an official proceeding; entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon; disorderly and disruptive conduct in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon; engaging in physical violence in a restricted building or grounds with a deadly or dangerous weapon; disorderly conduct in the Capitol grounds or buildings; and committing an act of physical violence in the Capitol grounds or buildings.
The FBI's Feb. 22, 2021, criminal complaint charging Padilla states he was seen in footage from a police officer's body camera wearing a scuba mask and pushing a police barricade line shouting, "Push! Push!"
Padilla was captured in other footage from the breach pushing the barricade, and police officers removed his scuba mask and began pushing him and striking him with a police baton "to get him to stop," the complaint states. Another video showed Padilla helping others move a large, metal-framed sign on wheels toward the barricade, where it was used as a battering ram against police, the complaint states.
"Padilla and numerous other rioters began to mass in front of a law enforcement line inside the archway of the U.S. Capitol Lower West Terrace doors. He throws the flagpole at the officers, who are simultaneously being attacked by rioters," the complaint states.
Padilla since his arrest has continued to seek release, but Bates in detaining him has maintained he "poses a concrete, prospective threat to the safety of the community," court documents state.
U.S. Department of Justice / Joseph “Jose” Lino Padilla, of Cleveland, Tenn. Padilla face multiple charges in connection with the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol in Washington.Breach investigation so far
Thursday marked 21 months since the Capitol breach disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress in the process of affirming the presidential election results, with damages estimated at $2.7 million, according to federal officials.
As of Thursday, more than 880 defendants have been arrested in nearly all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Approximately 272 defendants have been charged with assaulting, resisting or impeding officers or employees, including approximately 95 people who have been charged with using a deadly or dangerous weapon or causing serious bodily injury to an officer, according to federal officials.
Approximately 140 police officers were assaulted Jan. 6 at the Capitol, including about 80 from the U.S. Capitol Police and about 60 from the Metropolitan Police Department. Several people were also arrested on a series of charges that relate to assaulting a member of the media, or destroying media equipment, on Jan. 6, according to federal officials.
According to federal officials, 809 defendants have been charged with entering or remaining in a restricted federal building or grounds, with 89 of those charged with doing so with a dangerous or deadly weapon, 56 of them being charged with destruction of government property and 37 charged with theft of government property.
About 412 individuals have pleaded guilty to a variety of federal charges, many of whom faced or will face incarceration at sentencing. Approximately 99 have pleaded guilty to felonies, and another 313 have pleaded guilty to misdemeanors, according to federal officials.
Four of those who have pleaded guilty to felonies have pleaded guilty to the federal charge of seditious conspiracy.
According to federal officials, 21 people have been found guilty at trial, and another five defendants have been convicted following an agreed-upon set of facts. Of those 26 defendants, nine were found guilty of assaulting, resisting or impeding officers, a felony, including one who has been sentenced to 10 years in prison.
About 280 federal defendants have had their cases adjudicated and received sentences related to their activities on Jan. 6., and approximately 152 have been sentenced to periods of incarceration. Approximately 75 defendants have been sentenced to a period of home detention, including approximately 11 who also were sentenced to a period of incarceration, according to federal officials.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter @BenBenton.